


Be Here For You

by That_one_person_022



Category: Sonic the Hedgehog - All Media Types
Genre: But maybe this time it's the opposite, Crying, Established Relationship, Hurt/Comfort, Loving hedgehogs, M/M, Promises, Sad with a Happy Ending, Sonic always helps Shadow, Tears, hard times
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-07
Updated: 2021-02-07
Packaged: 2021-03-13 08:48:47
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,668
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29275722
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/That_one_person_022/pseuds/That_one_person_022
Summary: Shadow always had a hard time with his nightmares, but Sonic was always there for him in the end. But this time, the dark hedgehog saw how much his blue lover needed Shadow to be there for him, too.
Relationships: Shadow the Hedgehog/Sonic the Hedgehog
Comments: 17
Kudos: 47





	Be Here For You

**Author's Note:**

> Officially one week away from Valentine's Day...
> 
> I was listening to this song when I decided to write this out, and yes, music is something that always seems to inspire me. Can you blame me?
> 
> Song: Be Here For You by Sam Tinnesz  
> Link: https://youtu.be/fHQYm2WHZN0

Sonic and Shadow had been together for more than three years, going on to four in the next upcoming month. In those three years, both hedgehogs learned many things about each other. Many of them were good, from Shadow’s flower pressing to Sonic’s taste in fantasy books. But there were also the bad things that made them who they were, too, especially when it came to the dark hedgehog. The Ultimate Lifeform’s past had changed him very much, and sometimes those changes manifested themselves through the agent’s sleeping.

The blue hero had first discovered the dark hedgehog’s nightmares when they had decided to move in together. At first, Sonic’s presence had washed away the horrible terrors that would haunt him at night, specifically when his mind decided to go back to the day he lost his sister. Unfortunately, it didn’t stay like that for long as the gruesome images of blood and sounds of screaming had awakened Shadow with heavy breathing, tearing eyes, and shaking hands. 

Sonic had shortly awakened afterward and seen how frightened he was. The striped hedgehog was approached cautiously by his blue lover, hands tentatively reaching out and a calm voice trying to pull him out of the darkness. Soon enough, Shadow would be embraced by peach arms and pushed to a soft chest. Sonic would whisper soothing words into his dark ears. One always stuck with him the most though.

_I’ll be here for you._

Sonic would always wait for him at the end. The blue hedgehog would wait for him, even if Shadow felt stuck in that dark place for a long time. Sonic would wait. After his mind slowly crawled back to reality and the peach chest was soaked in nothing but tears, Shadow would open his crimson eyes to see emerald green, the color of life and hope. The dark hedgehog would embrace his blue lover this time, holding onto him with every bit of his strength, and let himself drown in the warmth that came from Sonic. And that was when the Ultimate Lifeform knew that he no longer was really alone anymore.

Not as long as Sonic remained by his side.

Even as Shadow experienced several other nightmares as they continued to be together, they were happy. Because the blue hero would always be there for him, with open arms and bright emerald eyes, when he came back from his episode. The same calming words repeated to him.

_I’ll be here for you._

That was how it always was between them.

So the day Shadow had woken up, without a nightmare this time, to an empty spot next to him was a surprise. Crimson eyes looked around the room and didn’t find the blue hedgehog anywhere. He got up and checked the bathroom, figuring that maybe Sonic was just using it. But to his surprise, the hero wasn’t there also. So, he left the room and checked all the other ones on the second floor. 

There were only three others, two guest rooms, and a bathroom in the hall, yet nothing. Shadow frowned and worry started to worm its way into his head. It was strange for the hero to be out of bed this late, and the striped hedgehog still hadn’t figured out where he was. Taking a small breath, dark feet descended down the stairs and met the silence. He poked his head inside the kitchen but his blue lover wasn’t there either. His feet padded their way to the living room, slowly scanning the place, his worry only getting worse as he moved forward.

Then he saw it.

Towards the back of the living room, the patio doors were open, the breeze dancing between the thin curtains. Shadow approached the opened doors and peeked outside, where his ears took in the sounds of waves overlapping each other. Their house was next to the ocean, a good distance away from it to the hero’s liking, but they were close enough to see the beauty of it, away from the bustling city or others' homes. That was when crimson eyes spotted a familiar figure sitting outside in the middle of the sandy beach. 

The striped hedgehog’s worry slipped away but uncertainty took its place. Why was Sonic out here alone, he thought. Shadow headed down the steps from their house’s back porch and walked towards the quiet hedgehog. Once he was within reach of the blue body, he waited for Sonic to acknowledge his presence, carefully watching for any sign, but nothing. 

“Sonic?”

A blue ear flickered but the hero didn’t move. The dark hedgehog shifted and stepped to the side, getting a better view of his lover’s face. But as he focused on him, Shadow’s breath was cut short and his heart stopped as he saw the tears that were running down peach cheeks. In all his three years of being with Sonic, he had never seen his blue lover cry like this, and to think that he was out here, alone… 

“Sonic, what’s wrong?”

The dark hedgehog knelt down and put his arms around the other. Crimson eyes snapped to look over the blue body, finding any sort of injury or physical harm, but there was none. Shadow returned his attention to emerald eyes, seeing something different compared to the other times he had stared at them for hours at night. Sonic’s eyes were tearful, but the pain was obvious behind them.

What happened to Sonic?

“Sonic, talk to me…”

The blue hedgehog only shook his head and tried to retreat from his hold, hands pushing away his arms. It broke his heart even more, and for once, Shadow was afraid that it was him for why Sonic was like this. Maybe the blue hedgehog had finally seen the real mess that Shadow always was…

“I-I hate m-myself…”

Then, the crimson eyed hedgehog knew that this wasn’t about him at all. Sonic was hurting, and it was clear that the reason for it wasn’t about the dark lover but rather about himself. It was something that Shadow didn’t expect at all because why would the blue hero say something _so_ awful.

Shadow pushed away from the cold feeling that wrapped itself around his heart and tried to embrace his partner again. Even as trembling hands tried to pry him off, he continued to reach out for the other, fighting off his own pain as he continued to see tears flow down from those green eyes.

“Don’t say that. You don’t hate, yourself. Please---”

A sob echoed in his ears.

“No! D-don’t you see! I can't s-stand who I am!”

The striped hedgehog swallowed down his own yell, finding it important to keep calm for this situation. But it was so hard, hearing his lover say those words just pulled at him to do something, anything, but he was scared, too. All these times, it was Sonic that chased away his nightmares and held him to his heart, whispering words of hope and love. It was Sonic that mended his broken mind and fixed the cracks in his heart and soul, finding himself again in a better place, a place where the cobalt hedgehog was waiting for him. Because, in the end, Sonic was the hero and he was helping the dark hedgehog find his way back to him. But now, he looked at his crying lover and saw that even Sonic had a broken mind and cracks in his heart and soul. 

Sonic was hurting, but he also tried to keep it away from Shadow, given that he was all the way out here, where the waves could drown out the sobs that were coming out of the blue hedgehog. Another familiar pang of heartache was felt as Shadow thought about it. Sonic had been out here alone to suffer through his own pain without Shadow’s help…

No, it wasn’t right. His blue lover had done so much for him, taking care of him and loving him for who he really was, digging to find the dark hedgehog’s heart under all the flaws and misdeeds that had once made him up. Sonic was always there for him, and now, it was Shadow’s turn to be there for him, too.

“Please, Sonic. Talk to me.”

His dark arms caught peach ones, feeling the shaking shoulders of the other, and tried to look directly into green eyes, no matter how much it hurt him to see his lover like that. 

“L-leave me alone!”

This time, Shadow had to swallow down a whimper, flinching at the words, and only pushed forward. That was the last thing he was going to do, Shadow thought. Instead of asking the other something, he just hugged him and softly kissed Sonic’s forehead, another sob ripping out from the hedgehog even louder. Shadow’s heart kept clenching at the sounds but still held on tight to his lover.

Sonic continued to cry in his arms, finally giving up on pulling away from his hold, and only pressed himself closer to his chest, muffling his sobs. Shadow squeezed the other’s arms and stroked cerulean quills, trying to calm the other down through soft touches. They stayed like that on the moonlit beach, the sound of the backwash filling the silent night.

Until the sobbing stopped and only sniffling could be heard.

But Shadow didn’t stop his stroking or loosened his hold on the blue body, not until the hedgehog shifted and moved to show his face again. Crimson eyes peeked down and saw the redness in emerald eyes, with dry tears still shining on his cheeks. Shadow wanted to wipe them away with his hands, but in doing so, it would cause him to remove a hand away from his hold and the blue hedgehog wasn’t ready to be let go of yet. 

To keep his tempted hands away, crimson eyes looked back up at the slow-moving waves that licked at the shore, the moon’s gleam reflecting on the water’s surface and making it look as if it glowed. His dark ears caught the sound of a soft voice below him.

“I-I’m sorry for yelling at you…”

He gave the hero’s arm a small squeeze.

“It’s alright.”

The last thing Shadow wanted was for Sonic to feel guilty of anything. The cobalt hedgehog didn’t need to apologize for expressing his feelings, something that the dark hedgehog had also done with the hero. If there was one thing that they learned about being together for so long is that it was perfectly fine to let out their thoughts and emotions in each other’s presence. It didn’t matter if the problem was so minimal or if it included other of their friends, they could talk to each other about it.

At least, that was how Shadow saw it with Sonic, but now, he didn’t understand why the other kept these feelings hidden. They were so raw, yet they were so well concealed by his blue lover. It was almost as if Sonic didn’t want anyone to know about them, as if they would see him in a different---

Then it hit him. 

Sonic didn’t want anyone to know, not even Shadow. The dark hedgehog frowned as he thought about it. Could it be because Sonic didn’t want to worry him or the others? Would the blue hedgehog really push his own emotions away to keep others…happy? If so, for how long has the hero repressed these feelings? But did it really worry the hero that he would be seen differently by their friends or him that he also had these sort of moments…was it not natural for Sonic to have them?

“Are you okay?”

It was a simple question, but the hedgehog in his arms was having a hard time answering it. He started to worry again as the seconds ticked by and Sonic didn’t answer with the truth.

“I really don’t want to talk about it.”

There it was. If Shadow knew something about holding on to negative thoughts and emotions is that they were dangerous just as much as their battles with any of the Doctor’s schemes. The only difference was that these things couldn’t be fought off with fists and punches. Feelings weren’t physical but mental; nonetheless, they were able to cause damage to one’s health. 

After all, Shadow was the one who experienced it through his nightmares, but they were less common and less effective ever since he moved in with Sonic. The blue hedgehog had made his sleepless nights go away and be replaced with dreams of a brighter future with Sonic and him happy, together.

But those weren’t possible if his blue lover wasn’t happy right now, and who knew for how long it had been like this.

Crimson eyes flitted back to Sonic and nuzzled the blue quills, getting a soft sigh and emerald eyes to finally look at him. The sadness behind those eyes was much more clearer to Shadow as he saw them closer up. 

“Let me help you, please.”

A peach hand came up to his muzzle, caressing his cheek, and a weak smile made its way across the hero’s face. It was so different from the ones Shadow was used to, the big and bright ones, the ones that always blinded him with the optimism they carried. Shadow wanted to see those smiles, not this one.

“Everything’s fine, Shads…I just had a… little episode there.”

Normally, he would scoff at the lie that he just heard, but right now, the striped hedgehog needed his significant other to open up to him. 

“Do you remember how you would hold me and listen to me after my nightmares? You were so ready to hold me and give me as much time as I needed to return to you…and when I did, you were always there, the light that guided me through my own darkness…”

Tears pricked at his eyes this time, a small smile growing on his lips, and he saw how Sonic slowly nodded, the hero’s smile wavering.

“So, let me be yours right now.”

Another few seconds passed between them before blue quills were once again under his chin, and Shadow returned to his stroking. He waited until the other hedgehog was ready.

He was going to wait for Sonic this time.

“I t-think it’s t-time I retired from being a h-hero…”

His hand almost faltered as he heard the soft words. 

“Why do you think so?”

A shaky breath was released and the dark hedgehog felt like mimicking it, but he didn’t. 

“…everything is g-getting a lot more c-complicated for me…”

Complicated? 

Shadow didn’t know what to think of the blue hedgehog’s words. His questions weren't being answered, instead raising more. However, as he repeated these words in his mind, he learned something about Sonic that he never knew or even suspected of the other.

Sonic had been hurting for a _long_ time, now.

“What is everything?”

He felt hands grip him tighter, and the blue hedgehog tried to press himself closer to his body. Shadow tried to comfort the other and reminded him he was right there with him. That he wasn’t going to leave or disappear, something he wished their problems did do, though.

“A-all the times-s I…f-failed…and…”

His ears heard his lover’s voice cracking, and in response, his own heart tightened at the sound.

“…all the m-mistakes I’ve made…it’s-s just _too_ much…”

It was so hard to believe that this blue hedgehog was struggling with something like this. Being the Hero of Mobius, Sonic always carried many pressures on his shoulders, something that was shoved onto him without any consent or permission of the blue hedgehog, but he always brushed them away and gave everyone his cocky grin, a sign of confidence. Except now, it was finally suffocating him.

Sonic had finally cracked, and the striped hedgehog only could watch and hear as it happened.

“Only problem after problem c-comes after everything I d-do…”

Shadow felt tears drip down to his lap.

“Fight a-after fight, homes-s are destroyed…”

A shuddering intake of breath trembled through the blue body his hands were holding onto.

“…r-robots and m-machines replace a-all the natural-l environment…”

Memories of fighting the Doctor made their way into his head. The times when they won the fight, but the wildlife, Mother Nature, around them had suffered the consequences of such fights.

“Everything lost t-to that s-stupid pollution and-d gunk…”

Shadow knew it hurt even more when it was too late to do anything but watch as the chemical waste and oil tainted the greenery and blue of the water. He was aware that Sonic loved nature very much, something he discovered early into their relationship. So seeing how the Doctor’s doings cause so much damage to the environment, the striped hedgehog knew it was one of the many reasons why the blue hero pushed forward.

But it seemed that all those pauses and standstills that the cobalt hedgehog had taken after their battles, standing there and watching the ruins take away something beautiful, it had been because the guilt was eating at Sonic. 

Oh, Sonic… 

“…and p-people think I’m a h-hero…even then…”

“That’s because you are one---”

The blue hedgehog in his arms broke away from him. The endless flow of tears rolled down his partner’s cheeks, and peach hands frantically gestured at himself.

“No! I’m-m not a hero! How can I b-be one when-n I-I lost…”

The rest of the sentence was drowned by the cries that came from his blue lover. Even so, Sonic didn’t need to finish it for the dark hedgehog to understand what he meant. After all, Shadow knew plenty about losing people and the hardships that came with it. 

He crawled back to the crying hedgehog, leaving some space between them. Shadow took a deep breath in and tried to calm down his racing heart, the one that urged him to take his beloved and leave everything behind. 

But he couldn’t do that.

“I know it’s hard to…accept losing lives…but you always try your best to do everything in your power to save them, Sonic.”

“But it’s not enough!”

The poor hedgehog shifted away from Shadow, putting more distance between them, and wrapped himself into a ball, concealing himself from the world and crimson eyes. The dark hedgehog clenched his fists and fought back his own tears as he saw Sonic only drown himself in the horrible pain.

He just wanted this to stop…for both of them to never hurt like this…to be happy again and be stuck forever like that…because damn it, they deserved to finally be happy! After everything they had been through, it was time they rested in peace and only worried about loving each other. 

Sometimes, Shadow wished the power of chaos control allowed him to freeze time. Although that was impossible, it didn’t mean that he couldn’t be there for Sonic when his lover needed him the most.

Without another thought, the striped hedgehog shifted his attention back to the blue hero, laying himself, on the sand, next to the whimpering hedgehog and wrapping his arms around him again. 

“It’s difficult to bear the pain of losing innocent lives, but it’s harder when you do it alone. Because if you do, you don’t know when to stop blaming yourself and start believing that you can do right for them by continuing to help others.”

He felt the slight movement from the other, slowly uncurling himself, but Shadow continued.

“Even so, everyone still grieves their loss in their own ways…even heroes. There’s nothing wrong in showing that pain because it’s only natural for us…and nothing will change the way we see you, Sonic. Not the world, not your friends, not me. Especially me.”

Crimson eyes saw emerald ones look at him, the cobalt body turning around to face him. Sonic was still shedding tears, but the sobs stopped.

“I know you think you’re doing right by hiding them, but it’s not right. I want you to know that it’s okay to let down your walls and let someone else shoulder all your worries and ache…to help you with all that pain.”

Shadow caressed the peach muzzle this time, giving the saddened hedgehog a soft look.

“And I know that I can’t take it all away, but I do know one thing.” 

Shadow leaned down, both of their foreheads touching and gazes looking into each other.

“I’ll be here for you.”

A weak laugh left peach lips before Shadow kissed them softly, trying to draw away all the struggles that kept his loved one in such a state, and made sure to hug him with all his love.

They slowly let go of their lips but remained close to each other, under the moonlight and on the soft sand, their ears filled with the sound of waves receding back to the ocean. And ever so slowly, Sonic’s breathing slowed down and became steady.

They remained like that for who knew how long, but the striped lover didn’t care because he promised his partner he would be here for him, in his strongest and weakest moments.

All this time, it had been Shadow that found solace in his blue hedgehog, letting the other cuddle him after his nightmares, but now, it was time the dark hedgehog opened his arms for Sonic. Shadow would always stretch out his palms to let the blue hero lay his head down on them, carrying the pain for his hedgehog and letting him know that it was alright.

“I promise that I’ll be here for you.”

He was always going to be there when Sonic needed to tear down his walls and let his heart and soul need healing. Shadow could do that for him, and there was nothing in this world that would stop him from doing so.

_I’ll be here for you._

That was their promise to each other. 


End file.
